From Ashes to Ashes
by Teddsworth
Summary: The Bell tolls, signifying the imminent death of the Flame. Two Unkindled are awoken form an ancient slumber to slay those who abandoned their duty.
1. Chapter 1

**As always, I don't own the Dark Souls Series. This wonderful game and its series is entitled to FromSoftware and Bandai Namco Entertainment.**

 _Rekindle the Fire, Ashen One._

A bell chimed, echoing through the darkness of a graveyard. The few inhabitants of the graveyards payed no mind to the toll, as they had no mind anymore. Some of the dead in the coffins stirred, but never awoke. However, only two managed to fully awake from their undeath.

He slowly woke from his ancient slumber, and took his surroundings in. He was in a coffin of sorts, but a small crack of light seeped through the right side of it. Getting his bearings, he felt he was covered in armor, unsure of what kind since he was laying down and offered only a sliver of light.

He felt a feeling that he should get up, and leave this accursed box. A nagging urge forced him to push the lid off his stone coffin, and was greeted to a light grey sky full of clouds that blocked portions of sunlight. He rose slowly and a dark-grainy substance fell off him, he caught it in the cup of his hand.

Ash.

He let it drop to the bottom of the coffin to add to the heap that now covered his armored knees. He got a good look at the armor now. Sleek and shiny greaves with a pointed, armored foot peeked out from the ash that was covering them, torn chainmail covered his waist and a metal chest piece that was adorned by a torn, grey cloth that covered the top of his chest armor. He realized for the first time he was wearing a helmet, but didn't dare take it off, for he knew not of where he was.

He noticed something in the corner of his coffin, he leaned forward and grasped it in his hand. He took a closer look at it, it was a flask of sorts, it was a dull green with a few cracks in the side. He shrugged and clipped it onto his belt on his waist.

He stood fully and felt his muscles groan at the long-forgotten movements and his back stretched with a few satisfying and some painful pops. Hauling himself out of his grave he pondered where he was with hand underneath where his chin would be, and he replayed the voice that he heard first awoke.

 _Rekindle the Fire, Link the First Flame._

He paused in his musing, what was the First Flame? Where was he? He looked around his surroundings; a graveyard. He snorted, _that answers one question_ , he thought.

He didn't remember anything. He held his hand to his head, hoping to revive some distant memories, but none came. He felt an emptiness within him, gnawing at him to be whole again. He turned his gaze to the coffin one last time, and peered at the ash inside. It felt familiar to him, and he reached out and grasped some of it and let it slip form his hand between his fingers. He didn't know what it was and that annoyed him greatly, he grunted and shook away the frustration, there were more important thing to do than wallow in his own problems right now.

A shimmer sparkled nearby and it caught his eye, and he turned his gaze towards it. Leaning against his coffin, was a sword sticking out of the dirt and a shield carelessly discarded a few feet behind it against a tree. He moved slowly towards it, biding his time. As he neared the blade he noticed that, it too, was covered in ash, as was the shield. _Peculiar._ He thought as he gripped the handle of the blade and pulled it free from the earth, dispelling the ash that remained onto it, and sheathed it in his thigh. He moved toward the shield that was half buried in some mudded area. When he reached it, he wiped away the ash on its face and looked at the newly revealed crest. Pictured onto the shield was a dragon in front of a sun that seemed to give off a soft shine. Shrugging, he yanked the shield out of the mud and hooked it onto his back.

Staring down the path, he sighed in annoyance, this was going to be a long walk. He started off toward the only path that was lined with sealed coffins. As he entered a small clearing, he saw a figure in black, tattered robes. Seemingly waiting for something to happen.

The knight made his way slowly into the clearing, looking at the stranger before him. He stopped a short distance away, and he raised his hand carefully as a greeting, but he struggled to find his voice to fully greet the stranger before him. As he looked closer at the man before him, he recoiled slightly, caught off guard by the appearance of the creature before him. The creature had no eyes, its face was horribly calloused and moldy looking, it had no eyes and few teeth and was very frail looking; evidence to his lack of body fat. It held a broken straight sword in his long, bony hands. The knight instinctively raised his sword in his hand and unhooked his shield from his back.

The creature seemed to notice that it was no longer in solitude as it turned its head towards the knight, its lack of eyes burning into his soul. It made an inhuman growl as it ran towards the knight. He instinctively raised his shield as the weak creature's broken sword bounced harmlessly off his metal shield. The creature recoiled and let out another growl as his strike was deemed ineffective, the knight took his chance and swung his sword at the creature and caught him in the arm, severing it. The creature seemed unfazed by this as he roared and lunged at the knight, who sidestepped the lunge and plunged the sword into its back, silencing its hate-filled growls.

He walked over to the creature and kicked it. It didn't respond, and he prodded it with his sword for good measure and felt satisfied as he saw something rise from its body. He didn't know what it was, but a feeling told his he should embrace it. The essence flew out of the corpse and into his body. He felt indifferent, and shrugged, wiping his blade clean from the blood on the corpse before him.

Suddenly, a muffled scream echoed throughout the clearing, he stood up and raised his weapon, suspecting an attack. But no attack ever came and he lowered his sword, only to hear the scream again, but louder. It was feminine, but he wasn't sure where it was coming from. The scream was heard from a third time, and it clicked in his head.

A coffin.

The poor soul just 'woke up' like he had, he felt a tiny stab of pity in his heart. A pounding noise followed by a fourth scream came from a solitary coffin half buried in the mud. He shook his head and sheathed his sword and hooked the shield on his back. As he approached the coffin, he noticed the quiet and wondered why she had stopped screaming and banging. Then he heard a soft sobbing coming from the coffin as he was no less than five feet from it. _She has given up hope,_ he somberly thought as he gripped the lid of the coffin. Giving all his might and a loud grunt, he popped the lid off the coffin and threw it to the side. He coughed as dust from the lid fell into his lungs, and peered inside.

And blue eyes wet with tears peered back into his visor.

Line Break:

She awoke to a soft voice of an old woman, it felt as if the old woman were right next to her, whispering in her ear and she lay on her back.

 _The Lords go without their thrones and refuse to return. Rise Unkindled, and Link the First Flame._

She opened her eyes to blackness, she could see nothing, not even a tiny sliver of light. She went to mover her hand to her face to wipe away the grogginess she felt, but it hit something cold and hard. She felt in front of her as she realized the material in front of her: Stone. Realization dawned on her again as she noticed she was in a small area with not room to move. She hyperventilated, feeling her stone prison grow smaller around her. She feared the lack of moving room as she squirmed to free herself.

Now knowing that she couldn't move she tried to push the stone in front of her out of the way. Her eyes widened, it was _sealed_. Someone must've not wanted her to get out.

She pounded on the stone in front of her as she tried to get the attention of the outside world by screaming. Seconds felt like minutes and minutes felt like hours, after several attempts to free herself and after several screams, it struck her. She was doomed to stay in this small prison for the rest of her life, until she starved or dehydrated to death.

She cried, she knew there was no hope to escape, and she wished she knew where she was and why she was there. When suddenly a grunt was heard as the stone in front of her, and the coffin spill some dust onto her body. Then, the coffin was torn out of its sealed position with a loud snap, and blinding light pierced her dark-accustomed eyes. She shut her eyes as her tears stopped falling, but her vision remained watery.

A cough turned her attention back to the less blinding light of the outside world, as a figure clad in ashy steel peered over her. She closed her eyes and opened them again, expecting it to be an illusion, but the figure was still there. They stared at each other for a few minutes, neither saying anything, when the figure moved his hand towards her.

She shrunk away from the extended hand, and looked fearfully at it. It appeared her savior was trying to help her up, but she didn't trust him so she stared at his hand before looking back at him with wide eyes. The figure grunted in annoyance as he disappeared from sight and she heard the sound of heavy footsteps fade away into silence.

She lay there, confused on to what just happened, she pushed herself up into a sitting posture and noticed something she was buried with. It was a dull green flask with cracks in its side, it was empty of any fluid, but she had a feeling that it was something of utmost importance. She grabbed it at went to place it on her belt, when she realized what she was wearing; she wore a cloak around her body and a hood fell over her head with her mouth and nose covered by a face wrap. Chainmail covered her body and her pants were torn off below the knee. On her thigh, she carried a small lantern, she clipped the dull green flask onto her belt and pushed herself to stand on her feet.

Ash fell off of her as she rose from her grave, and she took in her surroundings. She was in a clearing, and she noticed something lying next to her grave. One was a short sword made of steel was blade down a shallow pool next to a corpse with fresh blood leaking out. She walked over to it and grabbed the hilt and pulled it free, sheathing it in her belt. A bow hung from a nearby tree and arrows from a spilt quiver covered the ground in a heap. Sensing the need for the bow, she jogged up to the tree and jumped for the bow, successfully pulling it down as some twigs fell into her face. She bent down and picked up the quiver and checked each arrow before putting them back in their rightful place before slugging the quiver and bow over her shoulder. She caught a glimpse of her savior walking over a pile of fresh corpses towards what appeared to be a cliff.

She felt confused at her surroundings, _a graveyard?_ she thought with slight panic. _Did I die? What happened? If I'm dead how am I still alive?_ She took a calming breath and walked after her savior, hoping he had answers for her.

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The knight looked before him, a great expanse of mountains greeted him. It concerned him that he was, in fact, in the middle of nowhere.

After helping the woman from the coffin, he hoped she would journey with him. He was confused and hoped for some companionship through this strange place. He shifted his gaze towards the sword plunged into a pile of ash and bone. It hurt to look at but her felt a sense of peace coming from it.

Unsure of what to do, he walked forward and gripped the hilt of the sword. He jumped back when the ash below the sword caught fire, and he looked down in amazement. He felt his strength return to him and he sat down in front of the small flame, hoping to receive some warmth. His hip felt heavier than normal as held up his dull green flask to be amazed once more. The flask was now filled with a yellowish, gold fluid.

He was unsure what it was but it was tantalizing. He lifted his visor and took a small sip and felt a lot better and he took his glove off, feeling a weird sensation on his wrist. The long gash on his wrist he got from one of those crazed robed people healed over and all that was left a faded scar, he marveled at his arm, then turned his gaze back to the flask in his hand. He was curious, he gripped the hilt of the sword in the small bonfire and watched in bewilderment as the cup magically refilled to the top.

He sank back farther onto his rear and put his arm on his knee that was bent upward, he felt better now that he rested and his thoughts became clearer. He was enjoying the quiet of the mountain, occasionally hearing growls and groans farther down the path toward an open courtyard and a temple of some sort.

The sound of footfall behind him snapped him out of his gazing as he flipped his visor down and stood up, sword drawn. He turned around and pointed the sword at the being behind him only for him to stare at the woman he rescued step back on instinct. He stared at the woman in front of him and slowly lowered his sword to its sheath. She stepped forward a tiny bit and look at the bonfire curiously, then look back to him, asking the unspoken question. He followed her gaze and nodded curtly before stepping back from the bonfire towards the cliffs edge, and taking a seat on the edge with his legs dangling off.

The woman gasped in surprise as she felt the effects of the bonfire. He chuckled loudly enough for her to hear it before turning his gaze back to her. She was glaring daggers at him and cleared her throat, also trying to find her voice, but instead of him, she found hers.

"And what is so funny?" She asked in a cold tone.

The knight merely sighed, _I guess I can never laugh at a joke again when she's around._ He stood and walked over to her and kneeled in front of her, she scooted back a little to try to get some personal space. The knight cleared his throat and tried to form words, but he couldn't, his voice just wouldn't work. The woman narrowed her eyes.

"Well? Are you gonna kneel there all day or are you gonna answer my question?" her voice was of irritation now.

The knight merely sighed again, not but in frustration, but in sadness. He lifted his hand to his throat and held his hand over there, and casted a miracle. His hands glowed a soft yellow and the woman recoiled a little at the sight. He felt the ash in his throat clear and he could finally will his voice into words again. He cleared his throat, but this time he found his voice.

"Be at ease, I have no quarrel with you in this hellish land, your reaction was merely a blessed distraction from the horrible reality." His voice was deep, but it rumbled with a certain happiness that even surprised himself.

She relaxed and the coldness in her eyes evaporated into one of complete confusion.

"Where are we, and why don't I remember anything from before?"

"Well, I know the answer to one of those questions, for you see, we are in a graveyard" He spread out his arms in mock grandeur.

He narrowly avoided a piece of stone and gave a hearted laugh. The woman sighed and stood up to leave. He sobered up immediately and spoke in seriousness.

"I don't know where we are, and I remember nothing. But I do know one thing, as an Unkindled, I'm supposed to Link the Flame no matter what the cost, be it my life or yours, it must be Linked." He spoke his words with such conviction that even he believed it.

The woman turned toward him, her eyes expressing surprise, "Where did you hear that?"

He chuckled despite the seriousness of the situation, "Always with the questions, I… erm… 'awoke' to the sound of someone telling me that. Like it was my ultimate duty. I don't know what it all means, or what the First Flame is, but I feel that is my only duty now."

She looked frightened, and spoke softly, almost to herself. "I heard those words too when I awoke, but I wasn't sure what they mean. It feels as if this task is given to us out of utmost importance."

He nodded, taking her hand and giving it a reassuring pat before standing up and pointed toward the building on the edge of the cliff.

"I have a feeling we have to get to there, so let's follow the path, milady." He gestured to the path leading down to the circular arena- like area.

She let out a small chuckle and walked by him, un-holstering her bow in her left hand and letting it fall to her hip with her hand.

"And they say chivalry doesn't exist." She continued walking with a smile as she heard the laughing behind get closer as he fell in step with her.

"So, what's your name?"

He turned his gaze towards her, her blue eyes twinkled in the daylight. He pondered this question for a few moments, until he felt a frown behind his visor.

"I cannot recall my name." He replied sadly. He focused his attention on her half-hidden face, looking at her eyes as they gave off a sympathetic vibe.

"What is yours, if I may ask?"

She internally chuckled and held back a snorty of amusement at his carefully selected words.

"Please, call me Aedwen of Astora," she told him with a kind smile, though he couldn't see it, he could feel. "But I feel that I simply cannot call you Knight all the time, so a name will have to do."

He paused in their trek to the open courtyard, and she turned around. He could feel the gears turning in his head and he snapped his fingers at his newfound name.

"I have given it some thought, call me Edric, it's the only name that felt that it fits me."

She walked over to him and held out her hand.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance Sir Edric."

He made a deep bow in mock royalty and gently grabbed her hand and cupped the other on top of it.

"Likewise, Lady Aedwen."

She couldn't stop the snort that escaped her, and gave him a look, " _Lady_ Aedwen?"

He removed his hands and crossed his arms, "Well what am I supposed to say to _Sir_ Edric?"

She chuckled and he huffed, the pair continued down the path and slain a few Hollows that harassed them with broken swords and the occasional crossbow fire. They stopped in front of gateway that led to a courtyard with what appeared to be a man kneeling and a halberd sticking up right next to him. He was about to make a move through the gateway, until Aedwen reached out and grabbed his shoulder pauldrons to make him stop. He looked at her quizzically beneath his armor-plated visor.

"Yes?"

"Stop looking at me and look over there." She pointed to the left of them and he followed her arm with his gaze until it found its intended target.

No more than 10 feet away, was a white, specter that was very transparent, only the outline of it was visible with white light. The specter was running around, swinging at nothing with his sword, it stopped and turned at them and _waved_ at them, before slowly fading away into nothing. The duo stared, mouths agape at what they saw for a few minutes, until Edric broke the silence.

"What _was_ that?"

"I have no clue, but it waved at us. _Waved at us!_ What the hell was that? Where did it go?"

"Maybe it was a ghost of this horrid place? I have no idea, let's go talk to that kneeling guy and see if we can get some answers."

She nodded at his answer and composed herself, "You're right, let's go have a chat with that big oaf."

The two marched through the gateway and descended the steps. The kneeling giant made no response and the quickly found out why. There was a sword impaled into his stomach, he was obviously dead. An unlit bonfire was behind him and Aedwen went behind the deceased knight and gripped the hilt of the bonfire's sword. But nothing happened.

"Edric, why isn't this working?"

He walked over to her and chuckled, "Because you don't have the magic touch I suppose. Step back and let me do this."

As she stepped back and turned her attention to her surroundings, there was closed gate that blocked the exit to courtyard and she walked over to it. She gave the gate a push, only for it not to budge. She tried to push harder, but was rewarded with the same results. She turned her head when to her companion when she heard him swear loudly.

"Why won't it light!?" He grumbled as she approached him. He turned his gaze towards the kneeling figure, noticing black tendrils wiggling out of the exit wound of the sword. _I wonder…_ He thought as he moved to the front of the knight and gripped the sword handle and gave it a pull.

"Edric? What are you…" she stopped as he pulled the weapon free and immediately, the sword turned to ash in his hands. They shared a quick glance as the knight jerked up with a start and pulled the halberd out of the ground. Edric leaped back, unsheathing his sword and Aedwen getting distance and pulling out her bow and notching an arrow. Edric sighed as the knight slowly rose to his full height, towering over Edric by a good 7 feet.

"You have got to be kidding me." He grumbled as he unhooked his shield from his back into his left hand.

This was going to be a long day.

Line Break:

"You just had to pull the sword, didn't you?" Aedwen stated with exasperation.

Edric looked up from the pile of ash that lay at his feet, once he landed the killing blow on the monster that emerged from the knight. Upon killing him he felt that he caught on fire, but it didn't burn or anything, he actually felt whole again, and more powerful too.

"Well," he started as his hand moved to the back of his neck, "it let us light the bonfire."

She shook her head as she picked up the remains of her arrows from the pile of ash. She looked at Edric, he seemed to be on fire, but wasn't. He appeared to be covered in embers from a fire whose flame died out long ago.

"You look like you are burning when you move, are you all right?" She asked with a slight touch of concern.

He looked down at his hands, then down to his body. He really was on fire, but there were no flames. A single word echoed in his mind.

 _Ember_

He smiled underneath his visor and looked at her, realizing that she too was Embered.

"You appear to be Embered as well."

She gave him a confused look, "Embered?"

"Yeah, we both are burning without flame, just like from a fire who died out long ago. It feels great, doesn't it."

She had to admit that it did make her feel whole again. She felt something tug at her mind, but she couldn't bring herself to remember a lost memory. Sighing, she walked over to him and pulled him to his feet, grunting at his weight. He nodded in thanks and moved past her toward the closed door.

Once he was in front of it, he gave it a hard push with both hands and the door creaked open a little bit. He pushed again and the door gave way a little bit more, with one final push, the door cracked just enough so that he could pass through. He motioned Aedwen to follow as he forged onward, climbing up the long-forgotten stairs that led up to the building on the top of the hill. After dealing with a couple Hollows, they made it to the top of the hill and stepped into the area. They realized that they were in a throne room, by the look of it.

Five empty thrones, except for one, greeted them as they approached a drop off. To their left and right was a pair of staircases that led them down to the lower level. Edric looked at Aedwen, who merely shrugged and the two descended the staircase to the lower levels. When they reached the bottom, they noticed a depressed looking warrior sitting on the stairs, and Edric approached him while Aedwen hung back, watching the exchange that was going to take place.

"Hello?" Edric approached cautiously, and the man looked at the ground with sadness and pity.

"Ahh, another poor soul, roused from the sleep of death, well you're not alone it seems, you, your friend, and I. We Unkindled are worthless. Can't even die right, gives me Conniptions."

Edric took a step back at the man's depressed nature, _Crestfallen is more appropriate for this guy._ He glanced at Aedwen who look concerned for the depressed warrior and looked back at Edric, and she shrugged. He sighed and looked at the Crestfallen warrior.

"Why are we here, what's happening?"

The warrior looked up at Edric for the first time, his eyes had the look of a man who had given up everything for nothing.

"What we are doing? Well, they'd have us seek the Lords of Cinder, and return them to their molding thrones." He gestured towards the thrones above him. He shook his head. "But we're talking true legends here, with the mettle to link the Fire. We're not fit to lick their boots. But now the Lords are gone and we are merely the last resort option. Awaken those who failed to link the Fire a time long ago, and slay those who did only to Link it again to keep this bloody cycle going. Ironic is it not?" He let out a sad chuckle

Aedwen entered the conversation now. "Do you really have to be downcast right now. We just got here and you're already telling us it is hopeless."'

The warrior merely grunted, "It's already pointless, thief. Unless you have the stones to take on the Lords themselves, they won't be back here anytime soon."

Edric shrugged his shoulders, "Never know if you don't try. I'm Edric and this is my companion Aedwen of Astora. And who might you be?"

"I am Hawkwood."

Hawkwood signified the end of the conversation by returning his gaze back to his lap, his eyes glossing over as he faded into distant memories. The duo exchanged a weary glance and progressed down the stairs toward the small pit in the middle of the room. Suddenly, a throat cleared and Edric turned quickly to the disturbance, his hand on the hilt of his sword. Aedwen noticed the woman long before Edric did and put a hand on his shoulder to put him at ease. Aedwen released his arm when she was sure he wasn't going to slay the strange woman in front of them, and he stepped toward her. The woman smiled somberly towards the two.

She was wearing a dark colored robe, her eyes were hidden behind a weird looking visor. Her hair was a dirty blonde, pulled back into a thick, long, messy, braid that stopped around her center back. She bowed humbly towards them.

"Welcome to the bonfire Unkindled Ones."

"I see no bonfire around here, who are you?"

The woman's somber smile turned into a genuine smile, but it didn't reach her cheeks.

"I am a Firekeeper, I tend to the Flame, and thus, I tend to thee. The Lords are gone, abandoning the duty of Rekindling the Flame, they must be delivered to them. To this end, I am at thy side."

Edric let out a sigh of relief. "Well, Thank the Sun! Someone who actually wants to help us in this quest, but there is no way to leave this shrine. How do we leave to seek out our 'goals?'"

Aedwen laughed, "Now don't be too eager to leave this safe haven of ours."

Edric glared at her but couldn't stop the chuckle that left his mouth. The Firekeeper seemed amused by the interaction, but kept her face stoic.

"Produce the Coiled Sword into the bonfire pit. The mark of Ash will guide thee to the land of the Lords, to Lothric, where the homes of the Lords converge." She said pointing to the pit in the middle of the room, then stepping over to the stairs away from Hawkwood and sitting down.

Edric stared at Aedwen, confused. "Coiled Sword, we didn't pick one up on the way here, did we?"

Aedwen held in a mocking laugh as she pulled out the Coiled Sword from seemingly nowhere, and she could practically hear the Edric's jaw hit the bottom of his helmet.

"Where did you keep that this whole time? I mean, good job and all, but… how?"

Aedwen now laughed at his confusion, "A woman has her secrets." She said as she walked away from him to the bonfire.

Edric stood still a moment, wondering where she actually kept it until his head hurt. He looked at the Firekeeper who was hiding her laugh with her hand, He looked at her visor and saw no slots for her eyes. _She's blind?_ He shrugged at the thought and moved toward Aedwen as she plunged the Coiled Sword into the bowl of ash in front of her. The fire immediately burst to life as she faded into a goldish fog.

 _What the Hell?_

He turned to the Firekeeper who merely made a grabbing motion with her fingers and he understood the meaning. He walked over to the bonfire and gripped the hilt of the sword and was surrounded by a goldish fog. When he let go the fog dissipated and he was in a new location, one which he didn't recognize. He turned his gaze towards the open doorway with a familiar figure leaning against the side of the doorway.

"What took you so long?" teased Aedwen.

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 **A/N: Boom! Chapter One complete. So, how is it? Any thoughts or suggestions? Let me know what you think, and I promise to try to keep it going.**


	2. Chapter 2

**As always, I don't own the Dark Souls Series. This wonderful game and its series is entitled to FromSoftware and Bandai Namco Entertainment.**

Edric glared at her, "Well, you never said you were going to disappear on me."

Aedwen chuckled and pushed herself off the wall she was leaning on, she motioned for him to follow her and turned and walked to the closed door blocking their path. She looked at him with a sheepish look in her eye, he realized that she had her hood down and her dark brown hair was flowing freely, reaching her shoulder blades. She cleared her throat and looked at him in irritated way, and he realized that he was staring at her.

"I can't get the door to open, it's really heavy," she said while turning her head away from his to avoid his judgement. Edric stifled a laugh as he walked up the small flight of stairs leading to the closed door and placed his hands on the reinforced wood.

"It's just a door, how heavy… can… it… Be!" He exclaimed as he pushed the door open with great resistance. He turned to her and saw she was waving away the dust that fell from the door as it opened. "Sun above! You were right, that was a heavy door!"

She chuckled and pushed her way past him and headed out to the courtyard before them, with Edric trailing behind. He stopped and stared at the sight before him, a rather large kingdom was erected in front of them. It connected to a smaller portion of the kingdom with a large bridge. The main castle sat on top of the highest point, with clouds circling the peak of the tower.

"Wow," he heard Aedwen gasp to his left, "This place is huge."

He nodded in agreement and looked into the lower courtyard below them and saw a bonfire. He pointed to it and Aedwen nodded, the pair descended the stairs and walked over to the bonfire. Edric lit it while Aedwen sat down near the fire and warmed herself, looking at the weird, corpses that were acting like trees. Edric sat down opposite from her, and Aedwen looked at him, it was clear she was suffering from exhaustion. Edric was harder to read, since he never took off his steel-plated helmet.

He took the time to voice his concern, "You should get some rest, you've been through Hell so far today."

She looked at him, mulling over the idea. She looked at him with some concern in her face, "What about you, you need to rest also."

Edric waved her off and stood up, unsheathing his sword, and looking down at her face. "What I need is irrelevant, you need rest, I don't, it's all very simple." He spoke to her like a child and she bristled visibly, but made no attempt to argue as she lowered her back to the floor, and fell into a dreamless sleep.

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Edric sighed, he didn't want to be rude, but sometimes you just had to put them down hard. He wasn't even tired for that matter, even though he knew he should get rest. For the first time since he awoke, he took his helmet off. He raised his sword to eye level and looked at his face, if you could even call it that, and reeled at what he saw.

Staring back at him were no eyes, just dark, sunken-in holes where his eyes should be. His skin was deathly pale and calloused and his nose was also shallow. His lips were cracked and dry and he didn't dare to open his mouth. His head was bald, due to his hair falling out and he could see some scars on his bald head. He knew what he looked like, and it looked like the very things they've been fighting, a Hollow.

He stared at his reflection, _this wasn't supposed to happen, but why does it feel natural?_ He thought fearfully. The sword slipped out of his hand as the shock took hold of him. He was a monster, that much was true, but why was he still sane enough to know it? He had no answer and hoped it didn't come to his going fully Hollow.

He took a shaky breath and places the helmet back onto his head. There was no way anyone was finding out about this. He leaned against the wall and slowly slid down it, holding his head in his hands the entire time. He knew it was pathetic of him to get upset over his physical appearance, and he steeled himself. He picked himself up off the ground and focused on his surroundings, there were two staircases each leading down the opposite side of the guard tower they were on. But there was also a crack in the wall to the right side of him and he walked over to it.

Stepping through the breach, he found himself on a wooden platform. He looked down on the walkway and found some Hollows praying to the ones that turned into some sort of tree. He looked down further and saw what appeared to be Hollow Guard Dogs and two very large Hollows carrying very large weapons. The tower on the other side had a staircase leading up to it and there was another staircase halfway on the left that led down.

After surveying the area, Edric heard a feral snarl to the right of him and he spun around, weapon drawn. To his right, standing up, was a Hollow carrying a crossbow. Before the Hollow could raise his weapon, Edric impaled the Hollow through the chest with great force, spraying blood onto his gauntlet and some on his chest plate. The Hollow feebly grasped at the blade before falling limp on the sword. Feeling satisfied with the kill, Edric pushed the Hollow off and wiped the excess blood onto the Hollows tattered armor.

With the threat gone, he sat down and swung his legs over the edge, swinging like a child on a chair whose legs can't reach the ground yet. From that position, he carefully studied the eternal patrol of the Hollows.

Line Break:

Aedwen awoke slowly. She lazily pusher herself up to a sitting position, and rubbed her eyes. She was confused as to where she was, but then memories flooded back to her and she remembered where she was. Tugging at her belt, she freed her Estus Flask and looked at the mesmerizing gold glow of the liquid inside. She lightly swirled the contents before taking a sip of the Estus. It was warm and sweet, and she shivered as it made her feel a hundred times better.

Standing up now, she decided to look for Edric. Looking around for clues to where he went, she saw his helmet over some rubble in of a wall. She picked up her bow from the ground and trudged over to Edric. Stepping over the broken stone of the wall, she noticed his slumped posture, and how he was swinging his legs limply over the edge of the wooden ledge. He hadn't seemed to notice her yet as he was deep into his thoughts and even failed to notice when she sat down next to him.

She cleared her throat and Edric didn't even jump or seem surprised that she was suddenly next to him.

"Well, since you've obviously failed to notice me walk over and sit next to you, I think you need some rest."

He shook his head and stood up, twisting his torso in a stretch until he was rewarded with a satisfying pop in his spine. He swiveled his head to her direction, and she could feel the stare even through his knight's helm.

"I was thinking about some things, and no I'm still not tired," he said while pulling out his Estus Flask and taking a sip of the golden liquid and puffing out his chest. "Besides, I feel like I could take on a dragon right now."

Aedwen rolled her eyes, but remained concerned over her companion's lack of sleep. But she made no attempt to voice her worries at the idea of being berated again. Pulling out her bow, she nocked an arrow and aimed at a Hollow guard dog walking around below them. Edric realized what she was doing but before he was about to say anything, the arrow was released.

A death cry was heard from the dog as the arrow entered where it's eye would be. Unfortunately, the cry brought the attention of another dog and to two large Hollows as they brandished their large weapons. Edric sighed and jumped from the ledge while Aedwen nocked another arrow and let it fly into one of the large Hollows shoulders. The Hollow showed no reaction besides being jerked at the force of the arrow but proceeded to where Edric had jumped down.

Edric hit the ground and rolled with the fall. When he was upright, he unhooked his shield from his back and pulled out his sword. The Hollow who carried a battle-axe charged first and swung with a crushing force. Edric raised his shield in defense and braced himself for the inevitable hit. The battle-axe hit the shield with so much force, that Edric's shield was knocked out of the way and he lost his balance, stunned momentarily.

The Hollow moved in to exploit this temporary weakness as it rushed in for the easy prey. Edric recovered fast and rolled out of the way of the overhead swipe and slashed the Hollows leg. The Hollow didn't expect this and buckled to the floor onto its knees and Edric was about to stab the Hollow in the chest when he was knocked to the side. The second Hollow carried a Halberd, and realized that while it's foe was distracted, he could get an attack on him.

The Halberd wielder, who resembled a pincushion, thanks to Aedwen's arrows, now took a battle stance, and charged at Edric with its Halberd ready to run him through. Edric pushed himself to his feet and rolled out of the way, thanks to Aedwen's cover fire, he was able to kill the Hollow by slicing its side when it ran past him. Edric jumped back in time when the axe-wielder's weapon crashed where he was not a second ago. Steeling himself to not dwell on his close call, he went into a defensive stance.

The Axe-Wielder charged and raised its weapon for another attack, but Edric held his ground when he saw arrow after arrow pelting the Hollow, slightly slowing its advance with each arrow. After a few more arrows, the Hollow fell forward mid step, further impaling the arrows deeper into its body. Edric breathed heavily as he watched the essences of the souls enter both his and Aedwen's body.

Aedwen jumped down next to him and held out a fist.

"Pound it!" she said with childish glee.

Edric looked at her with a 'are you kidding me' face, but knew she couldn't see it. Sighing heavily, he looked away and gave her a fist bump. She started laughing as she practically skipped off towards the other tower.

Edric shook his head as he watched her and proceeded to follow her. She stopped by the steps up the tower, waiting for him to catch up. When he caught up to her, she looked at him with a pleading expression.

"Umm, could you maybe go first, I'm not exactly the frontline, take any strike against me, kind of warrior."

Edric chuckled and sheathed his sword and put his shield on his back. Walking up the steps, he heard some noises, like groaning and weeping, but he didn't know what to make of it so he kept walking up the steps. Upon reaching the top of the tower, he saw what was making the noise, several Hollow civilians where "worshipping" or whatever, to the tree-like people. They seemed docile enough and her heard Aedwen let out a sigh of relief that they weren't attacking them instantly.

As Edric walked closer to them, he noted that one of them stood up abruptly and slowly walked over to them, not expecting the sudden movements, Edric took a step back. He then slightly relaxed that it walked past him and moved seemingly towards the stairs. Edric turned back to the "worshippers" and saw a dead body with a bow that looked more durable than Aedwen's bow. He walked over and was about to pick up the bow, when an arrow hit his in his shoulder.

He grunted in pain, but broke the arrow off and spun towards the attacker, shield raised. He noted that an archer with a crossbow was loading up another arrow, when it turned its attention to Aedwen. Confused by the sudden lack of interest, he didn't see the Hollow civilian that followed him until it was a few feet away from his back. The civilian let out a blood-curdling screech as the same black goo monster erupted form the civilian.

Caught off guard, Edric stumbled back and lost his balance and fell looking at the red eyes that pierced his gaze. The monster reeled back and lunged forward, clamping its sharp teeth over Edric's arm and picking him up by his arm with its teeth.

Aedwen let out a shriek of horror as to what she saw. The Archer had been taken care of, but when she turned around, she saw the black goo monster bite down on Edric's arm and lift him up. The beast bit farther down as the arm was ripped free from it's former owner and Edric was tossed to the side. Aedwen nocked an arrow and fired into the beast, but the arrows had little effect against the goo and they just stuck there.

Edric's severed arm lay a few feet from her, but something wasn't right about it. She ran over to it and picked it up, then retreated back to a safe spot while the monster was closing in on Edric. She looked it over and saw that his severed arm was slowly disintegrating into ash. She gasped, but shook herself out of her curiosity and nocked another arrow to help get the pressure off of Edric.

Edric was, to put in the lightest terms, in some real fucking pain! He lost his arm and that wasn't the worst part! The monster was still closing in on him, slowly, which made it even more worse as he knew he was going to die but it was taking too long. As the monster neared him, a few arrows hit the goo, but the monster appeared unfazed, its eyes still locked on its weakest foe.

As it neared, its host arm grew into another large arm, filled with some white, bone-like substance. Edric heard Aedwen scream in horror as one arm grasped his legs, and another grasped his torso. Unable to move in the death grip, he knew it was over for him.

The pain shot to his midsection as he felt the beast pull him apart. He screamed in agony as he felt his spine snap in half and his skin start to rip away. With a final pull, the beast ripped Edric apart and tossed his halves in front of Aedwen.

She couldn't move, she was frozen. She just watched her savior get ripped apart and thrown in front of her. However, she saw no blood leak from his wounds, but that he was slowly disintegrating to ash, just like his arm. She saw Edric move a little, still conscious, as he raised his arm out to her before falling limp. After a few seconds his whole body turned to ash, armor and all, and the wind took the ash.

She was just about to run towards the stairs, when the beast seemed to realize what she was about to do. It took off towards the entrance to the stairs and blocked her path to the safety of the bonfire. She slowly backed up until her back hit the stone. The monster now slowly moved towards her and she realized how hopeless it was.

She was trapped.

 **AN: So that concluded Chapter 2. Shorter than Chapter 1, but I always wanted to leave off on a cliffhanger, no matter how shitty it may be.**

 **I'm sorry if it's been a while, with upcoming Finals and work I haven't had as much time to write this, so sorry if this chapter seemed a little rushed.**


	3. Chapter 3

It was a strange feeling, to be dead. On one hand, it was a peaceful feeling, sense of acceptance and peace of mind, no pain to uneasiness. But the other hand, he wanted to be back alive, saving someone from a giant goo monster that seemingly controls things. Although he was not physical, he felt like he was being pulled to… well… somewhere, but he had no knowledge as to where.

He knew Aedwen was fucked, but he could only hope that she would get her ass out of there and get to safety. He wanted her to carry on without him, even though he knew it wouldn't be hard to forget them because they only knew each other for almost a day. A pull tugged at his "spirit" and he decided to stop resisting it and be allowed to be taken to wherever he was destined to go.

Almost immediately, he was whisked away, and something that was very familiar but foreign came to him, he _felt_ something. As the feeling intensified, he felt gravely, as if someone were pouring ash over his body. But the thing he didn't see was that if you were standing at the previous bonfire he touched, you would see the surrounding ash from the surrounding area start to move and clump together, practically building Edric from the ground up.

His eyes shot open and he jerked up from his prone position into a rather comfortable, sitting position in front of the bonfire. He lifted the visor of his helmet that seemed to form with him and coughed out piles of ash, it wasn't a good feeling. Once the ash was cleared, he slammed the visor down over his face and took a shaky breath. _It's just a dream_ , He thought.

But a bloodcurdling scream told another story. Recognizing the scream as his companion Aedwen, he rose to his feet in a hurry and bolted down the stairs to the other tower. He could see the black mass of goo with white, bone-like protrusions from the gunk. Realizing that it was best to burn the spawn of Abyss, he pulled out some firebombs and ran up the stairs.

Seeing Aedwen with her back firmly pressed into the wall reaching for a quiver with tears in her eyes made Edric sad. He didn't really know why he was back but he wasn't going to waste an opportunity of playing hero.

Chucking a firebomb at the goo monster, Edric ran forward and ran a certain pine resin along his blade, causing it to erupt in flames along with the monster. The monster gave out a hurt shriek, but focused his attention on the new threat. Edric rolled forward in time to avoid the swipe from the monster and stabbed the back mass with his flaming sword. The black goo burned and bubbled away, and Edric slashed at the "head" of the beast, effectively cutting off a good portion of the head.

The monster's eyes grew and even brighter red as it lunged at Edric with great force, but Edric held up his shield to block the attacks of the monster. While it still exhausted him to hold up the shield against the barrage of strikes the monster was giving, he held strong and distanced himself and threw another firebomb. This time the flames burned through the goo and melted it into a blob of blackness.

With the beast now dead, Edric turned his attention to the woman he saved. Aedwen stared back at him, her hood back and her face wrap off was pulled down, She looked at him in pure confusion and shock, but also a hint of relief.

"Bu-But… You died?" She said, not sure of what to say after seeing someone get ripped in half and thrown hard in front of her. Edric gave her a hidden shit-eating grin.

"I got better, did you miss me?" He asked in mock play, raising his voice into a little child to hopefully cut down on some tension. But, Aedwen wasn't having it. She walked over and punched him in the gut, which would have been more effective if he wasn't wearing plate armor, but he still felt it.

"You died! You left me to the mercy of that… thing. And now you come back acting like that didn't even happen. Also, when you died, some green thing appeared over where you died and I'm slightly concerned about that."

Edric looked over to where she was pointing, and indeed, there was some green floating thing above where he died. It seemed familiar, but he didn't know what it was. Cautiously, he walked over to it and reached his hand out. On closer inspection, it resembled closely to fire, but it was floating and green, it didn't give off heat too. He made to grab it but as soon as his fingers brushed up against it, the green flame broke apart and absorbed into his hand. Aedwen gasped and backed away from his, but after a couple of seconds, she returned to his side.

The feeling of the flame entering his body was a feeling of empowerment, he felt the flame move underneath his skin, and "worm" its way into his chest, where the feeling evaporated. Testing to make sure it wasn't a trick to kill him again, he looked around and found that everything was still the same.

Aedwen sighed and moved towards the dead body with the bow on his back with some arrows in the quiver lying next to him. Edric gave her an incredulous look and crossed his arms when she pulled the bow off his back. She noticed this and went on the defensive.

"What? It's better than my old bow." She pulled her own bow, rough and mangled, off her back and tossed it behind her as she replaced the bow with the better bow. Edric dodged the incoming discarded bow and gave a sigh of annoyance.

"I died, for a bow?" He couldn't top giving her a the most annoyed and pissed off look he could muster, but realized that his visor was still down. "Whatever, it doesn't matter anymore now," he pointed towards the stairs and stepped to the side, "Well let's get going, ladies first."

Aedwen huffed, but her smile gave her away, and pulled her face wrap back on and pulled her hood up. She passed him before stopping and turned around, there was an amused glint in her eyes. "Comes back from the dead and still a gentleman, how do you even do it?" She didn't give him time to answer as she turned around and headed back to the bonfire, unbuckling her Estus Flask and taking a sip.

Edric stood there, before he grinned and shook his head. Sometimes he didn't even know why he was such a charmer.

Line Break:

After trekking across the wall, the duo stood in front of two paths, one leading up a flight of stairs, and another leading straight on, but blocked by a large group of Hollows. Edric and Aedwen weighed the options in their heads.

"Well, if we go up the stairs, there's a possibility of a way around them." Stated Aedwen, she gazed uneasily at the mob of Hollowed guards in front of her which, surprisingly, haven't noticed the pair yet. Edric sighed, and nodded his head.

"You're right, I don't feel like fighting the horde right now, so let's see what's up those stairs."

The duo ascended the stairs at a cautious pace, and finally reached the top. There wasn't that much except a couple of Hollows and what appeared to be a Claymore sticking out of one of the corpses. Edric perked up at the sight of the Claymore, he walked over to it and grabbed the grip with two hands and lifted it as though it were a hunting knife. He placed the Claymore's blade on his shoulder with one hand while his other hand gripped his shield.

Satisfied, he turned to Aedwen, only to see a look of horror in her eyes. He followed her gaze and paled, coming straight towards them, was a Drake. Aedwen found her voice as the overgrown lizard beelined straight for them.

"Is that a dragon?!" She cried out as the Drake landed on the watchtower in front of them. Edric shook his head violently and ran back to her, tackling her back down the stairs as a wall of fire washed over where they were standing not a few moments ago.

As they settled at bottom of the stairs, he made to stand, but collapsed. Wincing, he looked down at his leg to find it bent at an odd angle. He looked at Aedwen, who looked smug as she landed on him to cushion her fall. Her shit-eating grin was replaced with shock as she noticed his leg and cringed at it. His knee was bent the opposite way it should, he wasn't even sure how that happened even if he was falling down the stairs, but the proof was right in front of him. Aedwen cleared her throat and took a shaky breath.

"T-that doesn't look good, and we can't stay here." She motioned towards the mob of Hollows slowly advancing towards them as they heard the calamity of their fall. Until suddenly, the Drake leaned over the railing and breathed fire down onto the walkway that was flowing with Hollows, the fire ate away at the flesh of the Hollows as they burned. But the wall of fire never reached Aedwen as she moved Edric to a more comfortable spot.

Looking back at the burnt corpses, she chuckled. "I guess we can stay here after all." Edric groaned as pain shot through his leg. While he would've laughed at her small joke, his leg hurt too much to laugh. He looked up at Aedwen who giving him an apologetic look.

"Sorry." She said softly as she gripped his broken knee and pushed it back into its rightful place, trying to set it. Edric cried out in pain as it felt like his leg was cut off, but he could feel the other half. That was until he gripped his belt in a feeble attempt to dull the pain, his hands brushed up against a warm substance. He looked down and tried to ignore the pain as his hand brushed up against the Estus Flask and its golden-yellow liquid. _Of course,_ He thought as he feebly unclipped his Flask and brought it to his lips.

Aedwen grunted as she pushed the knee into its right place, hopefully. She wasn't the most skilled person in the medical field, but that didn't mean she couldn't try to help her friend get better. Looking up, she saw Edric take a large swig from his Estus Flask, and she saw a golden light emit from his broken leg. She was astonished when he bent his knee and pushed himself up and gave it a good kick to test his healed limb.

"What the…" Aedwen didn't even know what to say. This man came back from the dead and healed a broken limb in an instant. She realized that she had the same substance that he drank to get better, but she decided on waiting to test if that liquid actually healed her.

"Looks like I can dance again Ma." He joked as he jumped up in the air and clicked his heels together. Aedwen sighed heavily.

"What a child." She muttered under her breath.

Edric's mood changed drastically when he looked down the still smoldering path they were supposed to go down. He groaned and he hooked his claymore to his back and pointed down the path.

"Think we can make it without being burned by the Drake?"

Aedwen mulled over the options in her head. "I think we can, we just have to be quick about it."

Edric nodded and took off sprinting towards the wall on the opposite side, hoping to beat the wall of flame before it came down. Safely making it across, the Drake sent out flames down, but to no avail as the flames hit not one of the two Lord seekers. Aedwen cocked her head to the side.

"He has poor reaction time, doesn't he?" She yelled across the walkway.

"What makes you think it's a he and not a she?" She swore she could hear him giggling from where she was standing and groaned.

"EDRIC! Shut the hell up!"

Line Break:

"So… what do we do with him?"

"I think we should leave him, he's locked away for a reason, whatever it was."

"I'm sitting right here, guys."

The duo looked to the man wearing a strange hood currently locked in a cell. Aedwen looked to Edric, who merely shrugged. She turned to the hooded slave.

"So, why are you in here?"

The hooded man turned his gaze to Aedwen, which was a little unnerving because of the pitch-black eye holes felt like they were staring into her soul.

"I'm but a humble thief who got caught a life-time just as the fire started to fade, the guards went hollow and poor me was long forgotten." He said with a somber tone.

Edric stepped forward, "Who are you?"

"I am Greirat of the Undead Settlement, and I'd love to get out of here." He said with an impatient tone.

Edric nodded and turned towards the way they came. Aedwen was shocked by the sudden departure and gave Greirat a sympathetic look. "I'm sure we'll be back soon." She was unsure of herself, and Greirat seemed to think the same.

"Well, if you ever find the key, you know where to find me." He gave a dry chuckle and slumped back against the wall.

Aedwen looked at him for a couple of minutes, wondering if they _should_ free him. It felt like the right thing to do, but he could betray their trust. She walked back to where Edric went to and saw him leaning against the wall, looking at her intently.

"Let's get him out of there." He said, which threw Aedwen off guard.

"Wait, what? I thought you didn't want to help him?" Edric stiffened.

"I ever said I wasn't going to help him, I just let early so I could get the key." Aedwen narrowed her eyes.

"So where is the key Mr. Know-It-All?"

Edric shrugged, "Well, _partner,_ we're a team after all, I was waiting for you."

She rolled her eyes at that, but decided that they should get to finding the key.

Line Break:

It wasn't easy, but after many Hollows, a few Hollowed Knights, and a Hollowed dog or two, they found the key, with the word 'Jail' inscribed onto it. Walking up to the cell, unsurprisingly, Greirat was where they left him.

"Ah! You're back!" he said with hope in his voice. Edric smiled underneath his visor.

"Did you really think we would leave you." He said as he held up the key for the thief to see. His body changed from defeated to visibly excited as he shot to his feet and began bouncing on his heels.

Edric fit the key in the slot and turned it, opening the iron cell door with a loud creak. He walked towards Greirat and patted him on the shoulder.

"Well, you're free now, what will you do?" Strangely, the thief was ready for this question.

"Before I go any further, I have a favor to ask of you. In the Undead Settlement, there lives a old woman named Loretta. Give her this ring for me."

Greirat pulled out a beautiful ring, and dropped it into Edric's hand. Edric looked behind him and tossed the ring to Aedwen, who caught it and inspected it. She hummed in approval and slipped it into a pouch on her belt. Edric turned around back to Greirat.

"Don't worry, we'll get it to her, but here," he pulled out a Homeward Bone from a pouch on his belt and place it into Great's hand, "this will take you to a safe place. But you will not steal from them or you will have to deal with me, understood?" Greirat nodded furiously and squeezed the bone, in an instant, he was gone in a whirl of white smoke.

Edric turned back to Aedwen, and gave her a 'thumbs up,' She face-palmed.

"Are you gonna help everyone who doesn't attack you?" Edric chuckled.

"Well, if they give me a pint or two as payment. Then, hell yes!"

She groaned and hit her head against the stone wall.

"C'mon, let's go find us an old woman."

 **AN: I'm back from the dead! Here's a new chapter with a little more effort put into it.**

 **School's out so expect semi-regular updates. But I'm a Lazy Shit, so don't get your hopes up.**

 **Until next time my dudes!**


	4. Chapter 4

The duo stepped out of the side of the tower, the bonfire on top was burning and the sounds of Hollows worshipping to whatever they worshipped were heard. Edric and Aedwen ascended the stairs into a small area with some Hollows worshipping the corpse of a Drake. The corpse of the Drake was interesting, the scaly hide seemed to flake off and flow into the breeze, but it never fully disintegrated.

Intrigued by this, Aedwen walked closer to the dead beast, promptly pushing the few Hollows out of the way, earning a few feral growls but no aggressive acts. She ran her hand along the corpses neck and found that the head was hanging off the ledge that overlooked the lower rooftops. Hearing angry growls behind her, she drew her short sword out of its sheathe and turned around to see two Hollows jump over the ledge that they were hanging off.

Edric heard the same and hefted his claymore into a battle stance. Realizing that he would need two hands to efficiently handle his weapon, he hooked the shield to his back and used the know free hand to get better control of his weapon. The two Hollows let out a challenging growl and charged the duo.

Edric, expecting the reckless approach, swung his claymore in a horizontal arc, effectively cleaving one in half. The other was not fazed by the loss of his fellow attacker and charged at Edric. Seeing Edric not prepared for the sudden rush of the second, Aedwen lunged out and struck the Hollow in the side, earning a hiss of pain and newfound attention of the Hollow. The Hollow now ran for her, and lashed out with its rusty longsword. Like water, Aedwen flowed around the sloppy swing and rammed her short sword into the Hollow's stomach, and twisted the blade.

The Hollow fell to the floor unceremoniously with thud, but it was still moving. Feebly kicking or clawing at the woman in front of it, but Aedwen walked over to the Hollow and kicked his hand away when he attempted to grab her leg. She looked at the Hollow with something akin to pity and sadness, before stomping on its neck, effectively killing the being.

Edric looked at her, "Well damn," He said and walked over to the corpses and gave them nudges with his foot. "We really did a number on them, didn't we?"

Aedwen didn't say anything, but instead moved toward the ladder leading to the rooftops and climbed down it. Edric shrugged to himself, but followed her down the ladder.

When he reached the bottom, there were a lot of Hollows worshipping nearby on the rooftops, as he looked further down, he could see a ladder that descended downwards. He nudged Aedwen and pointed towards the ladder, "That's where we need to go to."

Aedwen nodded but pointed towards the group of Hollows, "but what about them?"

"What about them?"

She shrugged, "I don't know but I have a bad feeling about those guys."

Edric looked at her in disbelief, "These guys? They're harmless, we've been walking past these guys and they haven't been attacking us at all. You're just paranoid."

Aedwen sighed and slowly nodded her head, "you're right, I'm just being silly. But a healthy dose of paranoia never hurt anyone." Edric nodded and clapped her on the shoulder as he walked past her. Aedwen smiled a bit and followed him and they headed for the ladder.

Few Hollows acknowledged their presence with grunts, but most ignored them wholly, except for one. A Hollow noticed the duo coming and stood up. Admiring the landscape and design of the Kingdom of Lothric, Aedwen nor Edric noticed this particular Hollow until it was a few feet to their left.

A guttural scream broke the two out of their gazing they turned to the source. Meeting them was a horrifyingly familiar black goo.

Aedwen froze in fear at remembering how close she was to death last time she faced this monster nearly solo. Edric however, jumped back upon seeing the horror that "killed" him, his hand immediately went to his belt and froze when he found out he was out of incendiary bombs.

The beast started closing in on them, Aedwen still not moving a muscle, petrified with terror, and Edric fumbling around on his belt. It's glowing red eyes had a predatory look in them as white bits of something akin to bone protruded out of the monstrosity at random intervals.

Edric snapped out of his panicked searching and found out there was nothing really to do to fight the monster with. So, he started forming a plan.

"Hey Aedwen, I have an idea you run back up to the ladder and climb up and start shooting it with your bow and I'll distract it and hopefully do something."

But his plan was only met with silence.

"Did you hear me, Aedwen?"

Again, silence.

"Aedwen!"

He turned and saw Aedwen, she was visibly shaking and her skin was pale, her mouth made movement, but no sound came out. Edric cursed under his breath and grabbed her by the arm and ran away from the beast, dragging her with him. Where he was going, he didn't really know, all that was on his mind right now was to put distance between them, and the Goo Monster.

While he was dragging her along, she snapped out of her terrified state, and shook her head. She started running with him and kept pace with him. There wasn't really anywhere to run to because the portion of the rooftops they were on was small. But nonetheless, they ran to the opposite side of the rooftop, passing a… lizard with a gem on its back?

When they ran to the opposite side, Edric snapped his fingers in front of Aedwen.

"Hey…HEY! You with me Aeddy? I need you to focus so this thing can go down easier."

She nodded her head but stopped when the words actually processed in her head. "Yeah, I'm good. Wait a second, did you just call me Aeddy?"

Edric stared at her, then to the Goo Monster (who was taking his sweet-ass time to cross the roof), and then back to Aedwen. "You're asking that right now?" he asked exasperatedly.

She nodded, and he could see the seriousness in her eyes. He sighed and smacked the front of his faceplate in a facepalm.

"I called you that because 'Aedwen' is really long and takes away valuable time, like it is right now." He deadpanned.

Aedwen continued to stare at him, grumbled something unintelligible, and pulled out her bow and nocked an arrow. She nodded to him to signal she was ready, but she looked far from it; she was still shaking, but not as badly as she was a few moments ago, she was very pale, and her pupils were dilated.

Whether she was ready or not, they monster was gaining ground, albeit very slowly. Edric surveyed his surroundings and found nothing of importance, but then he got an idea.

"Hey, if we draw it over here, we could manage to run past it and head for the other ladder that leads down."

She looked at him doubtfully, but nodded her head. "I see, it moves too slowly so we'll have enough time to slip past and get down the ladder."

Still looking at the horrible abomination, he nodded.

The monster was still shuffling towards them, but once it got close enough, the two ran towards the monster. The monster turned its attention to Edric, and swiped at him with its claw-like hand, but Edric rolled out of the way, and safely made it to the opposite side.

Aedwen, while the hand came down on Edric, took the distraction to get by unnoticed. However, the "serpent head" of the corrupted Hollow noticed her and swung its head in an attempt to knock her down. Aedwen tried rolling out of the way but didn't time it well enough, the head caught her in the leg and she fell to the ground.

The claw then came upon Aedwen and trapped her to the stone floor, squeezing her hard. Edric, upon seeing her in trouble, swore and heaved out his claymore and charged the hand. The monster didn't see him as it was distracted by its new prey as he came up and brought his claymore down onto its wrist.

With an oddly satisfying sound, the hand was sliced off and evaporated off Aedwen. The monster cried out in agony, and swung its head at Edric in retaliation. Edric back stepped in time as the monster brought its mouth down on the spot where he once was, the ground shaking on impact.

Aedwen rolled to her feet, she backed up and pulled her bowstring back and let fly an arrow. The arrow flew and stuck into the head of the goo monsters host. It didn't really have the effect she was hoping for, but nocked another arrow and let another fly to the glowing red eyes of the monster.

This time, it had the effect she was looking for, and the monster screamed in pain again and thrashed around. Edric chose this as a perfect time to get up close and do some damage, holding the claymore with two hands, he charged in and struck with a horizontal arc. The monster screamed out in agony again and lashed out at Edric, knocking him away near Aedwen.

But their attack did some damage to the monster as the wounds they inflicted on it started to seep black liquid. Edric got to his feet and noticed the creature's blood, with a battle cry, he charged the monster and lashed out at the head. Meanwhile, Aedwen kept firing arrows into the monster's face. With a perfectly place slash and an expertly shot arrow, the beast fell and slowly evaporated away, leaving behind the mangled corpse of the Hollow.

Edric, panting from exertion, walked over to the nearest wall, and practically fell on it. Aedwen came up to him and slid down the wall next to him, both breathing heavily. After a few minutes of silence, it was broken by Aedwen.

"Please, let's never do that again." She looked at him pleadingly.

Edric nodded, "oh yeah, never doing that again for as long as I live."

The minutes passed by as the two regained their stamina and strength, not until the silence was then again broken by Aedwen.

"Soooo, 'Aeddy' huh?" She giggled as she heard an exasperated groan next to her.

Line Break

The two came to a large double door made from wood, piles of Lothric knights are lying on the ground behind them. The two look at each other.

Edric clears his throat, "So, this is where we're supposed to go?"

Aedwen tilts her head and nods, "I think so, overly large doors usually hold important things."

Edric chuckles, as he proceeds to open the door, and then his laughing become grunting, which then becomes complaining as he struggles to push the door all the way.

"Why… would they make… a door… this heavy?!" He groans as he pushes the door open, dust falling onto him from the door.

Aedwen sighs, "Well if you stop complaining, then it would be open by now."

He stops and glares at her, "Would you like to do it then?"

She looks at him, then to the door. "I think you can handle this."

Edric grumbles and pushes the door as far as it would go. He stands to the side and fakes a courteous bow. "After you, _milady."_ He says in a sarcastic voice.

Aedwen takes it in stride and walks in cheekily smiling to herself as she enters the dark room, lit only by candle light. Waiting for them is an old lady, sitting in a chair with a once elegant hooded robe on.

Aedwen raises her hand in greetings, but receives no response. She frowns and walks forward, Edric behind her. Once they reach the woman, they still don't hear a reaction or response from her. Aedwen turns to Edric, who merely shrugs in response to the unspoken question. She clears her throat.

"Umm, hello?"

The woman seems startled out of her trance, and barely looks up at the new arrivals.

"Ahh, the wait has been long, Unkindled One. I am Emma, High Priestess of Lothric Castle."

Aedwen smiles, "It's nice to meet you Emma, my names Aedwen of Astora, and this is Edric."

Edric bowed, "Hello milady, it's well that we see a friendly face in this hellish land."

Aedwen nodded, "We have a question for you, you say this is Lothric Castle, but if we are to find the Lords of Cinder, can you tell us where they are?"

Emma's face and friendly smile darkened into a frown.

"Ashen One, Unkindled One, allow me to speak frankly. You will not find the Lords of Cinder here. They have left, gone. To their churning homes, converging at the base of this castle. Head to the bottom of the High Wall. Forge on through the great gate," She proceeds to take out a small banner, ripped at the edges, "Take this and raise it at the edge of the gap that separates Lothric Castle from the Undead Settlement."

Edric nods and steps forward to take the banner, strapping it to his belt. "Thank you for the help Lady Emma."

She smiles as Aedwen bows and speaks her thanks. As the two leave she speaks out.

"Ashen One, Unkindled One. Head to the High Wall's base. Go through the great gate, and raise the banner to proceed. But beware. The dog keeps a close eye on things. The vile watchdog of the Boreal Valley."

The tow nod and exit the building. Edric stops when they descend the stairs, he looks at Aedwen as she takes a sip from her Estus Flask.

"What does she mean by 'watchdog?'" he asks.

Aedwen shrugs and swallows, "Maybe a guard dog, but if it's like any of the other dogs we fought, then it shouldn't be too bad."

Edric nods, "yeah, you're probably right."

And with that the two head down the stairs towards the great gate, not knowing what they have gotten themselves into.

Line Break

 **Ok, ok, ok! Don't look at me like that, but I'm back, at least for the time being. It's been a while hasn't it, but I guess that's on me. I've basically had a huge case of writer's block, I've written this chapter probably a dozen times and didn't like them, so I started over. Anyway, this story isn't dead until the day Valve make a third installment of any game, or until I say it's dead. Even though I'm not active that much, I try to write when I can.**

 **But hey, hopefully this chapter kicks me back into gear.**

 **Until next time my dudes!**


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